71. Social Sustainability Interpretations of Social Issues, -19

Population management – A Horizon of Options.  The options of population control options in the past have been associated with social, political, economic, racial, ethnic and cultural agendas at the expense of "less important" groups.  For a society that has chosen to move toward social sustainability, population management options become non-lethal, non-prejudicial and non-political PERSONAL options for the personal management of procreation.  It is important the everyone’s intentions are very clear.  

In a society that has chosen to move toward social sustainability, birth control devices, medications and medical procedures become topics for open discussion, education and training and eventual personal decisions by every individual BEFORE they become capable of reproduction.  For some, birth control is sufficient.  For others who have produced one, two or three children, sterilization would be desirable.  For those who know that they would produce DNA defective children, the options would be to become sterilized early or wait for DNA manipulation and in vitro fertilization to produce a child or children without the DNA defect.  

In a society that has chosen to move toward social sustainability, the connection between shared sexual pleasure and procreation of children is separated, giving sexually active individuals the potential to develop a meaningful sexual relationship with their partner without the guarded caution of producing unplanned children.  In such a society the intention of the individual and their right of self-determination has moved the reproduction of children into highly transparent, conscious and deliberate choice-making and decision-action, rather than as unpredictable reproduction.  

In the era of social sustainability development the relationship between the individual and society becomes symbiotic, and each is responsible for their individual and mutual social sustainability.  That means that in order for future generations of our children and grandchildren to become sustainable, we now must take on social responsibilities that first support the sustainability of society as a whole, and second the sustainability of themselves and family; symbiotically society accepts its reciprocal responsibilities.  What this means pragmatically is that society must educate and train individuals how to prevent/delay procreation; and all individuals must accept that training and education and practice birth control effectively — that includes EVERYONE who is capable of reproduction.  Such a symbiotic relationship requires the appropriate transparency of sex education to pre-sexual children, and greater transparency to older individuals.  Why?  While our sexuality is none of anyone’s business, reproducing children past the limit of replacement becomes everyone’s business because added population decreases material and social sustainability.